Brothers United by Blood
by Tempo90
Summary: AU. A hidden power awakes in the desert, Rath and Rin talk about stuff, and there is a killer stalking the Djur tribe. This, and more, in the latest chapter of Brothers United By Blood!
1. Chapter 1

_Tempo90:_ Hello Fire Emblem Fans...This fanfiction was started back in '05 by a fanfiction author named Nightmare3, how ever they misteriously dissapeared and have not updated the fanfiction in over a years time, nor have they responded to any attmpt at contact...I felt it was a shame to deprive people of this amazing work, and am going to repost it, giving Nightmare3 credit for the amazing work he has done so far, and the first 5 chapters...flame me if you will, but this is an amazing fanfiction, which does the series great justice... Now this is my first attempt at a Fire Emblem Fanfiction, so if any of the chapters starting at #6 onwards do not seem up to par, please let me know...I do not on the first 5 chapters of this fanfiction, they are the product of Nightmare3, and Fire Emblem belongs to Intelligent Systems...with this said...enjoy the story and please R&R.

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_**Chapter 1.**_

_Brothers United By Blood_

A bandit swung his axe at Karel, his shout of triumph never left his lips as Karel's blade flashed out tearing open the bandit's exposed throat. The Sacean warrior was rewarded by a shower of blood, he quickly turned away, not wanting to see another die by his blade, too many had already suffered that fate.

Raven grunted as he brought his silver blade crashing down onto the head of another of the would-be attackers, the man's head burst like an over ripe melon. Raven roughly yanked his gore soaked blade out of the horrid remains of the man's head before quickly helping his companion dispatch the remaining raiders.

Karel ran a rag down the edge of his Wo Dao, cleaning away the blood that always seemed to find it's way back onto it. With a heavy sigh he slid his sword back into its scabbard and looked across the campfire at his companion; Raven hadn't changed much since they'd fled the destruction of Lord Eliwood's army at the hands of Nergal, he looked more ragged and he was definitely thinner than when they'd run but he was undoubtedly still Raven, same tough as old boot leather Raven.

"You think we've got a chance?" Karel asked, breaking the silence that always seemed to settle over them at nights.

Raven looked up from the fire. "I don't know…but I'll never stop trying." Karel nodded and let the silence drop back over them, each man quickly losing himself to his thoughts.

* * *

_Eliwood's broken body lay at Nergal's feet, torn apart from within by the sheer power of Nergal's dark magic. Hector had gone down under the endless barrage of morphs, the army was in disarray, everyone was fighting to escape. Just an arm length away from Raven, Sain went down, one of Uhai's strange arrows buried in his heart. Raven winced as an axe sliced his shoulder, leaving a long gash behind._

_Outside the Dragon's Gate Priscilla pushed back sweat soaked hair, out of nowhere a second army of morphs had descended on the already exhausted army. "Gods of the forge grant me this boon, FIRE!" a ball of flame leapt from her hand and engulfed one of the morphs, it went down without a sound, its strange gold eyes still staring blankly at her. She turned her mount and joined the others fleeing back towards Fargus's ship. _

"_I'm sorry brother…" she felt tears start to roll down her cheeks "We couldn't hold out any longer…I'm sorry."_

_Karel smashed the hilt of his Wo Dao into a morphs face, the creature fell away, its skull crushed by the blow. Karel spared a glance at his beloved weapon, its blade was covered in hairline cracks and it would break very soon. He spun, -narrowly dodging a thunder spell- and drove his fist into another morphs throat. The swordmaster sucked a shaky breath into his burning lungs, he was tired, he was as good as weapon-less, if he didn't get out now, He. Was. Going. To. Die. _

_Raven struggled towards the exit, he had to get out. He had to get away, he had too much to live for, he couldn't die now. He thrust his silver blade into the air. "For House Cornwall!" The shout rang out across the great hall as he charged at the dozen morphs that stood between him and a chance to live. _

_Lucius looked up when he heard Raven's shout, the young bishop closed his eyes for a moment. _

"_Lord Raymond, please forgive your servant for what he is about to do." Lucius tore the spell book Athos had given him from his belt and looked at the morphs that guarded the exit. "St Elimine" he began "Great Lady of the Holy Light, grant me your purity so that I may cleanse-" he felt his legs buckle as an arrow entered his knee, he swallowed and focused on the morphs that stood in front of Raven_

"_-the sin from this world-" another arrow struck him, this time through the back, just below his neck. "Aureola!" he finished with a gasp. A blinding flash of white light engulfed the morphs that stood at the exit, incinerating them._

_Raven spun when he heard Lucius begin to chant. "You damn monk." He hissed and began to fight back through the thick of the fray. _

_Karel cast aside his shattered sword and headed towards the flash of light, he had to survive this day. He ducked an axe blow and punched its wielder in the stomach, he didn't stay long enough to see if it had any effect._

_Lucius felt himself being lifted up. He desperately tried to focus his eyes. "Raven? Is that you?" There was no reply, just a feeling of cold dread. _

_Raven watched in horror as the morph of Lloyd dragged Lucius up by his hair. Raven tore through his opponents but it was too late, he could only watch as Lloyd thrust his regal blade into Lucius's back and through his heart. Raven felt his heart stop, and the sword slip from his fingers, as he watched the fountain of red erupt from his friend's chest. He felt his knees buckle and a strange wetness on his checks "You damn monk." He whispered "You damn stupid monk." _

_Karel wrapped an arm around the crying warrior, he wasn't sure who it was but it didn't matter, he was going to need the help of others to escape this island. He dragged the crying man to his feet and began to force him towards the door. _

* * *

Raven looked up from the fire. "Karel?" His Sacean friend grunted. "I never did thank you for saving me." At that Karel looked up. Raven closed his eyes and fidgeted with his armour. "Thank you" he said at last "you've given me a chance to set everything to right." 

Karel smiled across at his friend. "You're welcome." He whispered, too softly for Raven to hear him. Without another word the two men lay down for the night and to prepare for tomorrow's challenges.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2.**_

_Flight of the silver hawk_

"Bulgar," Raven whispered in awe "One of the last free cities." The red head glanced over his shoulder towards the horizon and the border between Sacae and Bern "but not for much longer."

Karel clapped his hand onto Raven's shoulder. "Those of Sacae will fight until no more than a child lives in Bern to protect that freedom."

Raven grimaced. "I don't like your people's odds."

Karel gave a dry, humorless bark of laughter. "My people? Hardly, no Sacaen horde shall march under my banner, not now…" he trailed off and stared at the sky "And not ever." Without further comment he started down the hill.

"Karel," the Sacaen swordmaster turned to face Raven "Maybe one day the Saceans will need a leader." Karel shook his head and started back down the hill.

"Coins for a cripple?" A man in soiled green robes asked and held out his hand to a passing woman, the woman pulled her cloak tighter and hurried away. "Ungrateful fool! I was crippled fighting to stop this!" he made a sweeping gesture with his arms "This _new _world and its darkness!" The cripple shook his fist at her retreating back before collapsing back against the wall.

Sharn looked down at his left leg, it had been hacked off below the knee leaving jagged, hanging strands of flesh and it had festered horribly when he had been trying to escape that god forsaken island.

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_The warrior flung his hand axe at Sharn's waist, the young sage twirled and unleased his spell into the charging swordmasters. "From the pits of the nine hells I call you, flame of darkness that burns brightest of all, ELFIRE!" the ball of fire exploded in front of the morphs, both were incinerated in the wash of flame. Sharn smirked and readied his next spell._

"_From the pits of the nine hells I call yo-" he stopped, staggered for a moment before toppling over backwards, the warriors hand axe imbedded behind his right kneecap._

_The morph advanced slowly, holding his silver axe at the ready._

_Sharn gasped in pain as he tried to scramble up, the warrior fixed him with an expressionless stare and raised his axe over his head. Sharn screamed in rage and brought his left leg crashing into the morphs groin, instead of collapsing in pain the morph just smiled softly and swung its axe down._

_Sharn screamed in pain as the morph tore its axe loose from the mangled remains of his left knee, and screamed even more loudly when the creature brought its axe crashing down again._ _Sharn ran a hand over his eyes, he'd blacked out shortly after that and awoken god knows how many hours later to find the morph lying next to him, its throat torn out._

* * *

The former tactician leaned closer to the main street and thrust his hand out to another passing woman. "Coins for a cripple?"

Karel stared out at Bulgar's famed 'Merchant Square'; it was the size of several small manor houses with merchants for every part of the 'free' world selling anything from armour to fine oil paintings.

He let out a long sigh and weighed his coin bag in his hand, -mercenary work had become extremely profitable after the Etrurian army had been decimated by the joint forces of Nergal and Bern- he should easily have enough gold for what he needed…

"Coins for a cripple?" Raven tugged his arm out of the beggars grasp and slowly turned to face him.

"I'm not a charity, now," He made a dismissive gesture "Be gone."

The beggar pulled himself into a poor mockery of a nobleman sitting at a high table, he smoothed down his soiled robes as if they were made of shimmer silk (1) and fixed Raven with a glare that would have curdled milk.

"I don't want your pity or your charity!" He spat at Raven's feet "I fought long and hard to prevent this, and now look at me!" He yanked up the hem of his robe to reveal the mangled stump of his left leg.

Raven let his eyes wander over the man's wound, it had festered horribly and must have caused him great pain but…Raven felt his breath catch tied just above the man's knee –or what was left of it- was a thin strip of brown leather, at one point it may have been a belt but now it was twisted and stained beyond recognition, instead Raven found himself staring at the tarnished silver clasp, it was forged in the image of a soaring hawk, a writhing fish held in its talons.

Raven grabbed the man by his soiled robe and dragged him up onto his one good foot. "Where did you get that?" He hissed.

The man's blue eyes narrowed "I've had it all my life" he puffed out his chest "It's the bag awarded to master tacticians of the Etrurian Tacticians guild."

Raven felt his blood turn cold. "You," He muttered weakly "What are you doing here?"

The beggar screwed up his face, as if he was trying to recall something important. "Raven," He said at last "Is it really you?"

The mercenary nodded. "Yes Sharn, it's me."

Sharn's eyes brightened. "It's been so long," his face fell as he gently pried Raven's hands off him and leaned against the wall "I didn't know that anyone else made it out of the gate."

Raven looked grim "Karel is with me." Sharn nodded slowly. Raven swallowed and steeled himself "Have you heard anything of Priscilla."

Sharn exhaled slowly before turning his gaze towards the pavement stones. "No," he looked up at Raven "I haven't heard much of anyone."

Raven sighed and ran a hand over his eyes. 'I won't cry, she wouldn't want to see me cry.' He grabbed Sharn by his elbow. "Come on," he said and helped the former tactician to hobble along "You look like you need a hot meal."

Karel clutched his oil skin wrapped purchase close to his chest as he made his way back towards the tavern where Raven and he were staying.

"Make way! Make way for the guard!" Karel felt a hand roughly shove him to one side, causing his package to fall onto the pavement. He rounded on the person, when he felt a restraining hand on his shoulder.

"It's not worth it young one." Came a voice from behind him

Karel shrugged off the hand and picked up his package. "You!" he shouted after the group of green robed men and women. "Stop!"

They turned to face him as one, a young Sacaen warrior stepped forward, he was at least a head taller than Karel. "Yes citizen?"

Karel cast an appraising eye over them. "Has the festival of midwinter started early this year or do you people just like to degrade yourselves?"

The young Sacaen stepped forward, trembling with rage. "You dare mock the Bulgarian guard?"

Karel smiled at them. "Yeah, I do."

The warrior's hand flew to the hilt of his sword, before a hand descended on his shoulder. "This one is too much for you." Another warrior stepped out from behind the first, this one was shorter and thinner but he carried himself with a deadly grace. "Those who disturb the peace in this quarter must answer to me," He drew out his killing edge "Leave now before I am forced to hurt you."

Karel chuckled. "You presume much," he said as he carefully placed his package back down "If you leave now your people won't have to carry you home in a matchbox."

The warrior stared at him. "I am Guy, captain of the Sacaen guard."

Karel raised his sword in a mock salute. "I am called Karel by those who know me," he sprang at Guy, his sword flashing out of its scabbard. Faster than the eye could follow it slashed across Guy's midriff, there was a spurt of crimson, Guy winced and backed away, his blade held so the point rested on his right shoulder "And the Sword Demon by those who cross me."

Guy sprang at Karel slashing his blade at the right of Karel's head. Karel grunted and side stepped at the last possible moment before driving his elbow into Guy's already wounded stomach.

"Too slow" he whispered into Guy's ear as the younger warrior flew past. The younger Sacean gingerly raised himself and pointed his sword at Karel.

Karel smiled. "More?" he widened his stance "Alright." He placed his sword horizontally in front of himself, its tip facing right, he let his left hand trail down to halfway down the flat of the blade and stopped. "If you wish to leave," he looked at each one of them in turn "I won't stop you."

Guy raised his blade in a salute. "If you are ready," his eyes narrowed "You may come."

Karel sighed and charged, his sword arching out at Guy's right side.

The younger Sacean brought his blade down. '_I can block this,_' he though '_It's such a simple strike._'

Karel rolled his right hand upwards so the edge of his blade was pointing at Guy's armpit. '_Too slow_,' he thought as he drove his left palm onto the flat of his Wo Dao, adding momentum to the strike.

Guy gasped in horror as Karel's blade suddenly changed directions, and cried out as it sank into his armpit.

Karel smiled in satisfaction when Guy dropped his killing edge. "You're good," he smiled "the wound isn't fatal, but you won't be picking that up again for a while," he bent down and retrieved his package "good day."

The guards started after him but Guy raised his good arm to stop them. "Don't," he winced as he picked up his sword "Inform the commander, she'll know what to do." Guy accepted help from the other guardsmen. '_The Sword Demon_,' he thought in wonder '_My master_,' he looked at the sky '_Do you remember me?_'

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(1) Shimmer Silk. A kind of silk that is made up of many coloured threads of it appears to be changing constantly (does not exist) 


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter 3.**_

_Trouble Begins._

The last rays of sunlight were fading from the sky by the time Karel had returned to the inn. He cast a shadowed look around the cramped common room. There was a small group of men clustered around the spluttering fire place, and two women sitting in a darkened corner, there hoods drawn up casting their faces in darkness. The swordmaster shrugged and hurried towards the ramshackle staircase, eager for a nights rest in a bed. '_Even if I'm sharing it with lice_' he thought bitterly.

"Karel!" a voice shouted from behind him.

The swordmaster turned slowly, his hand wandering down to the hilt of his Wo Dao. "Yes?"

A man with one leg and a cane slowly stumped over to the swordmaster. "It's good to see you."

Karel arched and eyebrow. "Do I know you?"

The man recoiled in mock horror, before a grim expression settled onto his face. "I'm Sharn," the man extended his free hand "It's good to see you alive." Karel reached out and uncertainly grasped the former tactician's hand.

"Hey!"

Both men turned to see Raven weaving his way around the inns other patrons, a tray with bread, slightly moldy cheese and –by the smell of it- week old meat cradled protectively against his chest. "Give me a hand," he said to Karel "Go get some drinks."

The swordmaster shrugged and wandered over to the bar, he looked back over his shoulder and watched Raven and Sharn disappearing upstairs. "Save some for me!" He shouted at their retreating backs, they both appeared not to hear him. Karel muttered a few choice swear words under his breath as he approached the bar.

Karel froze as a hand grasped his shoulder. "You need to come with me," a soft, feminine voice said in his ear "Now," Karel stiffened as he felt the tip of a knife touching his ribs "I'm sure you won't argue."

Karel closed his eyes and groaned softly. "I think I'll have to decline."

The woman dug her dagger into his ribs. "You don't have an option."

Karel chuckled. "What if I wanted you to kill me?" The woman froze. "What if there was nothing I desired more than the feeling of my blood flowing out of me?"

"You don't mean that." There was a slight quaver in the woman's voice.

Karel grinned. "You're right," he turned to face her "But I'm not coming with you." The woman made a clumsy grab at Karel's arm.

"Shyunpa…" Karel whispered.

He vanished. The woman looked in disbelief at the spot where he had been standing. "Ho-?" Her question was cut short by the feeling of a sword piercing through her hood and slicing into her neck.

"Never underestimate me." Karel whispered to her body as he carefully lowered it to the ground. He tossed a silver piece to the barkeeper. "My friend has had a little too much to drink, make sure she gets the normal treatment."

The surly barkeeper scowled at Karel as he stepped out from behind the bar and grabbed two fistfuls of the woman's robe –feeling her up in the process-, dragging her to the door, pushing it open and heaving her out into the gutter.

Karel chuckled quietly to himself, '_The barkeeper thought he had just disposed of a drunk, it should be a while before anyone realizes she's missing._'

There was a rustling sound and the sound of the door creaking open. _'Her companion,' _Karel cursed out loud and dashed after the vanishing robe robbed figure _'How could I have been so stupid?'_

"What are you doing here?"

Raven blinked as Sharn questioned him again. "What?"

The tactician sighed and swallowed a slice of cheese before continuing. "I asked you what you are doing here."

Raven shrugged. "Mercenary work mostly," he looked at Sharn "Why?"

The young man gave the red haired warrior and secretive smile. "Because the Raven I knew didn't do anythingunless he had a reason whether it was trying to avenge his family or," the tactician smiled "Beating Sain into a pulp because talking to Priscilla."

The mercenary winced at the last part. "Please don't talk about her."

The tactician looked confusedly at Raven "Who? Priscilla? Why?"

Raven looked away from Sharn. "I don't want to talk about it."

"But I-"

Raven rose, his eyes dark and his face set in a snarl. "I said I didn't want to talk about it and that is final!" He roared the last word and yanked the door open. "I'm going to get Karel." Raven slammed the door with such force Sharn was sure it would break.

The tactician waited a few moments before cutting himself another slice of cheese and chewing on it, lost in thought.

"You didn't have to kill her," The other woman was huddled over her companion's body "She'd never hurt anyone." The woman stroked her friend's cheek.

Karel winced when he saw the woman's face. '_No_,' he thought '_She's hardly old enough to be called a woman, she's more a girl._'

The other woman rose and threw back her hood, she was older with worry lines along her brow, she had the same striking teal hair as the dead girl. "You killed my daughter," she drew a dagger out of the folds of her robe "The commander be damned! You killed her!" The woman was screaming now, tears running down her face.

Karel sighed and reached for his Wo Dao. "I can see that this will only end when one of us lies next to her," he wrapped his fingers around his blade's hilt "And it won't be me."

The woman screamed and lunged at him. "Die you murderous fiend!"

Karel watched as she came, not moving, not even blinking as she raised her arm to strike. "Shyunpa…" He whispered and vanished.

The woman spun on her heel and prepared strike again, however before she could take one step a great wound opened across her chest, sending a spray of crimson onto the pavement. "Monster," she croaked hoarsely "What have you done to me?"

Karel walked past her, lightly pushing her on the shoulder so she collapsed next to her dead daughter. "Killed you" he replied simply. He didn't look back at the dying woman and her dead daughter as he entered the inn, nor would he ever think of them again.

The woman looked at her dead child. "I'm sorry," she whispered "I failed you and I failed the commander," she coughed and grasped her daughter's hand "I'm useless aren't I?" With those words she slipped into deaths cold embrace.

Raven looked up in exasperation as Karel entered. "Where have you been?"

Karel smiled sheepishly. "Nature called."

Raven blanched before turning on his heel and walking back towards the stairs. "And to think I was worried about you." He muttered under his breath.

Karel relaxed and followed after Raven.

* * *

A man with lavender hair and a purple head band stepped out of a near by alley. He blanched at the sight of the two woman's bodies; he knelt beside them and pushed the hair out of the child's eyes. "You never were good at thieving," he sighed before rising "It appears you weren't any good at spying either." He gave a pitying look at the bodies before vanishing into the night. 


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter 4 **_

_Consequences_

Guy winced as he rubbed his armpit.

"Does it still hurt?"

Guy spun, flushing slightly when Lyn leaned in to get a better look at his wound. "I'll live Commander."

Lyn smiled and playfully ruffled Guy's unbound hair. "You don't need to call me that when we're in private."

Guy felt his ears go pink. "Yes Comman- I mean Lyn."

The emerald eyed Sacean smiled before turning on her heel and leaving Guy alone. The young swordmaster exhaled slowly before grabbing his shirt and following after her.

The lavender haired man rolled his eyes as he was forced to go over his report again. "Yes sir," he said in a very bored voice "That is correct; the grand army of Bern is marshalling alone the border."

The large man sitting opposite the lavender haired man bristled. "I heard you the first time," his large salt and pepper moustache quivered "What I want you to tell me is ifthis 'Nergal' you keep talking about is so powerful whydoesn't heled the attack on Sacae?"

The lavender haired man shrugged and absentmindedly tossed one of his daggers above his head, he watched it twirl for a few moments before snatching it out of its fall.

The man with the slat and pepper moustache slammed his fist down on the table. "Damn it man! Answer my question."

The lavender haired man placed his feet on the table and looked at the man over the toes of his boots. "I don't know," he smiled "Maybe we all got lucky and a dragon did us all a favor and killed him."

"Or," a voice said from the shadows "Maybe he's got more important things to do than attack us," A tall man wearing a bandana stepped out of the shadows "Wouldn't you agree Legault?"

The ex-black fang member sighed. "That's a possibility," he admitted "Though unlikely," he tossed his dagger again "What could be more important than destroying the last organized body of resistance?"

The man with the bandana shook his head. "I do not know," he fiddled with his quiver "But if there issomething more important than us," he swallowed nervously "We could be facing the end."

Legault stabbed his dagger into the table. "Always the pessimist, eh Rath?"

Rath glared at Legault. "Maybe," his voice started to rise "But at least I'm not a-"

"Damn it you two!" Shouted the man with the salt and pepper moustache and he banged his fist down onto the table. "This isn't the time for your petty disputes," he quivered with poorly controlled rage "If the commander was here she'd say-"

"Exactly the same thing," said Lyn as she entered the room "Legault, how many morphs are there in Bern's army currently?"

The ex-black fang member scratched his head and leaned back in his chair. "That's the thing," he looked at the ceiling "We don't know, ever since the invasion of Etruria the amount of them seems to be dropping," he shrugged "They just seem to disappear."

Lyn frowned. "That isn't good," she looked around at the three men, staring each in the eye before continuing "If the reports are right the armies of Bern will march within the next few days," she clenched her hands into fists "And they have three times out-"

"Five times," Legault interjected coolly "They were reinforced by garrisons of Laus, Tania and Araphen."

Lyn swayed on her feet, she didn't even notice when Rath grabbed her arm to steady her. "Five times?" she whispered hoarsely. "How can we possibly survive?"

Legault looked over at Lyn pityingly. "We can't," he said bluntly "There are fiveof Bern's finest warriors for everyman, woman," he swallowed and looked uncomfortable "And child in Bulgar."

The large man with the salt pepper moustache placed a large leather map on the table. "Here," he said and jabbed his finger onto the Bern and Sacae border "They will come in from Bern herself and then from," his finger followed the border down to where it joined with Lycia "here."

"No," hissed Rath as he let go of Lyn's arm and walked over to the map "Laus and her armies shall come through," his finger pointed at a narrow mountain pass "Here and join up with the force from the Western Isles," he jabbed an arrow into the Etruria/Sacae border "Here."

Lyn looked at the map hopelessly. "Then we've got nowhere to run but," she traced her finger up towards Ilia "Into the wastes." Lyn looked at each of her captains in turn. "Sacae is alone," she swallowed a lump in her throat "And she shall die alone."

Legault placed a comforting arm around Lyn's shoulders. "We're not quite alone, my scouts have reported a force of Etrurian knights and mages have been causing havoc in along the Lycia/Etruria border," Legault's pale lavender eyes sparkled with excitement "If we send our fastest riders we may just be able to-"

The large man with the salt and pepper moustache pointedly coughed into his hand. "Milady these are rumorsit would be best to fortify the city and-"

Legault slammed his second dagger into the table in front of the man. "Damn it you old fool! Have some faith!"

The man shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "I just don't believe that sending our men out into enemy territory on the words of farmers."

Rath sat down and locked eyes with him. "I agree that the chances of finding them if they existare slim, but look at our options," he slammed his hand down on the map "Almost everythingis enemy territory now and if we fall," Rath swallowed "There will be nothing, Ilia with hide behind there vaunted neutrality, the Nabataians have disappeared into the swirling sands."

Lyn passed a hand in front of her eyes. 'Oh Sharn, if only you were here. What should I do? Do I have the right to gamble my people's future on a possibly mythical Etrurian army?' Lyn lowered her hand and looked at Legault. "How can men do you need?"

The assassin's eyes sparkled. "Give me a dozen of your best riders and I swear that I will bring you an army," he grinned "Even if I have to bring them tied up in a sack."

Lyn felt her face spread into a smile. "Oh Legault," she embraced the assassin "The world never seems quite so dark when you're around."

The assassin gently broke away from Lyn, still smiling. "Then milady I shall ride as if Bern's entire legion was behind me." He bowed and swept out of the room.

Lyn felt her throat constrict. "That legion may very well be behind you." She whispered to herself. 'This war has affected us all,' she looked at Rath and the man with the salt and pepper moustache, they both looked so pale, so exhausted 'I mustn't look any better, if only Eliwood and the rest were here with us.'

Lyn looked at Rath. "Have your men bring everyone capable of bearing arms to the armoury, conscription is now in affect." Both men nodded solemnly before leaving. When the door clicked shut Lyn sank down into a chair. "What have I done?"

* * *

Karel gulped down the watery soup, the bartender had been right when he'd said it wasn't much. '_At least it's hot,_' Karel thought bitterly of the time he and Raven been forced to eat cold soup '_And at least it's cheap._' Karel felt his hand wander subconsciously to the now very beaten package he had concealed in the inner pocket of his robe. 'Good, it wouldn't do to lose you now, not after I've just found you.'

Raven looked up from his own meal of watery soup and mouldy meat. "Did you hear that?"

Karel wrinkled his eyebrows. "Hear what?"

Raven shock his head. "Nothing," he dropped his spoon into the soup "well as appetizing as this meal is, I think I'll turn in." Raven staggered over to his mattress and flopped down.

Karel sighed and looked over his shoulder; the ragged figure of Sharn hadn't budged from his position on Karel's bed. The swordmaster dropped his spoon into the now empty soup dish and tried to find a comfortable position in his chair. With one last curse on crippled tacticians everywhere, Karel slipped into a very uneasy sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter 5.**_

_Discovering Old Friends._

Karel awakened to a stinging pain on the right side of his face, he raised his head off the floor and looked around the room, apparently he'd fallen off the chair at some point during the night. "Mother Earth's bones!" he cursed. "I hate tacticians," he hissed, swordmaster picked himself up off the floor and brushed some dirt off his robe "I hate them!"

Sharn mumbled something in his sleep about breasts. Karel felt his eye twitch, this wasn't fair. A smirk spread across the swordmasters face, he padded across to where Sharn lay and grabbed the mattress. With one great heave the mattress shout out from under the sleeping tactician, who landed with a resounding crash.

"I swear she looked older than sixteen!" screamed Sharn as he threw up his hands. The blond man looked around, there weren't any angry guards or blood thirsty parents standing over him –which was a pleasant surprise- but what he saw made his blood run cold. Standing over him was a smirking Karel, leaning the mattress dangerously on its side.

"Um…hi?"

Karel's smirk widened. "Enjoying your dream where you?"

"Um…a little?"

Karel's eyes were glinting dangerously. "Would you like to go back to sleep?"

"Um…yes?" Sharn would always swear that he saw little fires of rage burning in Karel's eyes after he said that.

"Well I think you'll need a mattress then," Sharn opened his mouth to protest but it was to late, Karel released the mattress "Enjoy." He smiled happily after the straw mattress had landed on Sharn. "Justice is done."

A groggy Raven stumbled up beside him. "Oh Elimine," he looked at Karel, his eyes widening with shock "You killed him!"

The mattress in question twitched. "A little help?" came a muffled voice.

Raven sighed. "Karel you got get some breakfast," he waved at a money pouch on the room's rickety table "And try not to scare anyone." Raven grunted and lifted up the mattress.

"Raven-sama!" the crippled tactician lunged at Raven's legs. "You saved me! Thank you Elimine! Thank you!"

Raven shook his leg to dislodge to clingy man. "If you don't get off me I'll put you back under."

Sharn immediately let go of Raven. "Fine! You mercenaries are so callous!"

Raven laughed and helped the crippled man up. "Come on," he said and passed Sharn his cane "Lets go see if Karel bought something edible."

Karel's eyes widened in shock when he entered the common room, there were green robed men and women everywhere. "What's going on?" he asked the nervous barkeeper.

"Conscription," the man said as he rung his hands "They say that Bern's army is marching against Bulgar."

Karel's eyes flashed with something the barkeeper didn't recognize –but it still made him shiver- "Bern you say?"

The man swallowed. "Yes, they say that everyone is needed to defend the city."

A large man in green approached Karel and the barkeeper. "Name," when Karel didn't answer the guard jabbed him in the chest with his quill tip "Come on I don't have all day." The man made to jab at Karel again.

The swordmaster grabbed the guard's wrist. "Don't."

The big man yanked his arm free. "Name." he said again in a bored voice.

Karel smiled. "Karel."

"Occupation?"

"Mercenary."

The guard's eyes lit up. "Would you be interested in earning some gold?"

Raven walked up behind Karel. "What's all this about earning some gold?"

Sharn leant on his cane. "Gold?" his eyes sparkled "What's the job?"

The guard smiled. "If you and your men would come with me sirs," The guard lead the three into the street "Now," he said and began to scribble onto the piece of parchment "How many men are in your group?"

Karel nudged at a loose stone with the toe of his boot. "You're looking at us."

The guard did a double take. "What two men and a cripple?" His lip began to quiver with poorly suppressed laughter, he fought to keep his face straight. "What battles have you been in?"

Raven looked at Karel. "Should I?"

The swordmaster patted Raven on the shoulder. "Of course."

Raven seized the guard by the robe and lifted his clear off the ground. The guard whimpered when he saw Raven's thick muscles bulge slightly. "You want to know where we've fought?"

The guard nodded. "Yyyy-yes."

Raven unceremoniously dropped the guard on his rear. "Fine, we fought at the battle of Tuscana where a small group of men held the line against Bern's 6th legion, we fought in Etrurian war and Lycia conquest."

"On the Lycian side and then later with Etrurian," Karel added "and we've killed more of Bern between us than the entire Lycian resistance force." "Before it was wiped out of course." He added.

The guard slowly climbed to his feet. "Between the two of you?" his brow furrowed and he pointed at Sharn. "What's he for?"

Raven slapped his hand down on Sharn's shoulder, causing the man to teeter dangerously. "This is our tactical advisor."

"I can also cast magic!" Sharn pipped up, and threw a dark look at Raven.

The guard swallowed nervously. "Do you have any mercenary titles that we would know you by?"

Raven shrugged. "Don't know if you've heard of us but people call me 'The Lord of Cornwall'," the red head shrugged again.

The guard made another note on his piece of parchment. "And you?" he gestured at Karel.

The Sacaen swordmaster arched an eyebrow at him. "People call me the 'Sword Demon'."

The guard paled considerably and finished scribbling down notes. "Alright, if you would follow me back to the barracks we can negotiate your pay."

Raven flashed a grin at Karel. "Well at least we got a job."

Karel nodded solemnly and started after the guard.

* * *

Jared McRath looked out at the plains of Sacae. They were beautiful at sunrise, the way ever blade of glass was touched by the first tongues of flame. "Is this what we are here to destroy? Are we meant to kill beauty before it has a chance to reveal its self?"

"Talking to yourself again captain?"

Jared spun, his hand instinctively reaching for his thunder tome. "Oh," he let the tome slip from his fingers "It's you."

"Is that anyway to treat your superior?" Replied the other man as he affectionately ruffled Jared's dark brown hair.

"No," Jared swatted irritably at the other mans arm "Hello Riche."

The shaman smiled, his black eyes were alight with mischief. "I'm here to get a report on your unit's equipment for the general," his face became somber "We are marching at noon."

Jared's face paled. "Noon?" he echoed. "Why so soon?"

Riche shrugged. "No idea," he patted Jared on the shoulder "Enjoy your sunrise, it may be the last one you get to look at in peace." Riche turned and left Jared alone to contemplate everything he'd said.

Jared sighed and looked out at the sunrise. "The fires of war will soon engulf beauty and leave it twisted beyond recognition," he shrugged and started down the hill after Riche "But such is the way of men."

* * *

The barracks was crowded with men and woman of varying sizes and ages, they all had one thing in common though, they all looked terrified at the though of fighting against the armies of Bern.

"This way please," Said the guard as he elbowed his way through the throng of people "if you are who you say you are the commander herself will want to meet with you."

"'If you are who you say you are?'" echoed Raven "Isn't our word good enough?"

The guard looked concerned. "O-oof course it is…th-this is just a p-pp-precaution."

Karel looked disgustedly around the barracks. "Whatever."

The guard ushered them into a small room. "Wait here."

Raven flopped down into one of the beaten armchairs. "Wonder why they have these," he thumped the armrest of his chair "In here."

Sharn unceremoniously slouched in his. "Who cares? At least there's some kind of comfort in this miserable excuse for a world."

Karel raised an eyebrow. "A few moments ago you were saying how great it was to have a job."

The crippled tactician glared. "Yeah and then I remembered I won't get anywhere near the front because of this," he patted his mangled knee "And these guys," he jerked his thumb towards the door where the guard had left "Aren't going to be nice and hand over command their army to screw up like me."

Raven glared at Sharn. "Don't ever say that again."

"Say what?"

"Don't ever say you screwed up," Raven slowly got to his feet "No one could have predicted what would happen that day, it's nobody's fault that we didn't kill Nergal."

"I was your tactician!" Sharn shouted "I should have been able to protect you!"

"It wasn't your fault!"

"It was my fucking fault!"

"You Elimine damned moron!" Raven stalked over to him. "If I still held you responsible I would have left you in gutter to die!"

Sharn –completely forgetting his injury- leapt up, only to topple over and fall on his face. "You mean that?" he asked raising his head to look at Raven.

"Yeah, I never blamed you for what happened." Raven pulled Sharn to his feet.

"What about you Karel?"

The Sacean walked over to Sharn and stared into his eyes. For a few moments neither of them moved, the air seemed to grow heavy and time almost stopped. "No," said Karel, finally shifting his eyes away from Sharn's "I don't blame you or anyone for what happened."

Sharn's eyes began to water, and before he knew it tears were streaming down his face. "Thank you," he hugged both of them "Thank you."

The door creaked open and a woman entered. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting I'm-" Lyn froze mid stride.

Three sets of eyes focused on her, icy blue, blazing crimson and mysterious brown orbs stared so intently at her she felt like she was burning.

"Oh Elimine," she shivered "You're alive," the three men didn't move "How could you possibly be alive?"

* * *

Legault cursed as he flattened himself against his horse's neck. "How did they know we'd come through here?" He shouted back at the riders behind him.

The man closest to him shook his head. "I don't know sir they must have a-" he gasped in surprise as an arrow entered his gut, before falling from his horse and being trampled by his fleeing comrades.

Legault cursed again, barely a league out from Bulgar nomads had waylaid them, nomads that rode under the royal white dragon of Bern. "When Saceans turn on each other it means that the world has grown dark indeed." The lavender haired assassin looked back at his men, half of them were already dead and the others not much better.

"Ride hard," he shouted and kicked his mounts flanks "We must reach the mountains before we can make a stand." Legault swallowed nervously, even if they made it to the beginnings of the mountain range that would –eventually- run along the Lyican border it would be a tough fight.

He ducked an arrow and cursed again. 'I'll worry about fighting when we get the chance.'


	6. Chapter 6

_Tempo90_: This marks the beguining of my work. I hope I do this fic service from here on. I do not own Fire Emblem, I merely own the OC's...please R&R everyone.

* * *

Legault spurned his steed onwards, desperately searching for some evidence of the so called "mythical" remnants of the Etrurian army. '_Damn…Bern must not want anyone to cross the border…'_ he thought as he veered left to avoid another arrow shot from behind him. The few remaining Saceans who had left with Legault formed a close circle around him.

"Sir! The mountain range is a few miles away. We should be there shortly. As long as Bern's wyverns aren't around we should be able to get the upper hand in the mountains…we've seen smoke from fires in the distance." One of them said.

_'Finally…some luck on this Elimine forsaken day.'_ Legault thought and then cried out. "We ride for the mountains! Rides your horses to death if you have to, but we need to get there fast!"

* * *

"Oh Elimine you're alive…how could you possibly be alive?" Lyn asked the men. 

"Lady Lyndis!" Sharn yelled and hobbled over to give his old friend a hug.

"It's a long story…" Raven replied "Karel saved my life back at the Dragons Gate…me and him have being doing mercenary work since then to pass the time…and we came across Sharn yesterday."

"This is no time to talk…I hear you're looking for some mercenaries?" Karel asked.

"Always interested in blood shed…I knew I heard your voice Sword Demon." a voice said from the corner of the room.

"And I know you don't mind as long as it serves your purpose Rath of the Kutolah." Karel said with a sneer.

Raven walked over and placed his hand on Karel's shoulder. "Relax…not here….besides…he's a comrade"

"You two stop it!" Lyn yelled with tears in her eyes. "We've only been back together for 5 minutes and you two are back to bickering…" And then she gave into huge racking sobs as she remembered the past, when everyone was still alive…back when the world was a better place.

A knock on the door pulled her out of her thoughts as two slender females with purple hair opened the door. The shorter of the two had purple eyes and she looked at Lyn and said "Is this a bad time commander…we can come back later if you'd like?" her soft, childish voice masking her true 18 years on Elibe.

"No…it's ok," Lyn said sniffing and wiping her eyes. "Give your report."

"Alright." The second one said, her emerald green eyes glinting in the torch light. She produced a map form inside her cloak and spread it on the table as everyone gathered around. "Bern's troops are currently stationed here, here, and here, poised to strike at Ilia, Sacae, and Us, here in Bulgar…Now our spies currently report low morale in some of the troops ready to attack Sacae, so I believe that should we move a battalion of troops into Sacae to reinforce the nomads, they should be able to repel the troops with minimal casualties."

Sharn looked at the thief. "I agree…who ever this young lady is she has some knowledge of tactics."

Lyn held out 3 scrolls and one quill "You three, sign up, now, and then we'll discuss your mission." and then waited while they signed it, checking it over, and then nodded. "Raven, Karel, and Sharn, you are going to Sacae to reinforce the nomads, I'm giving you a small battalion of veteran troops…you're going to be rushed for time, so we're also providing you with some of our fastest horses. Sharn you're in command of the squadron…I believe in you…Good luck gentlemen. Dismissed." She finished and turned out of the room.

"Sharn…come on…we've got our orders…lets move. Don't worry…we're facing humans this time…we're more then capable." Raven said.

"I still don't think I can do it…I'm a failure as a tactician, and I know I'm just going to lead you all to," He was cut off as Karel punched him on the jaw, knocking him to the floor.

"Don't you ever say things like that again…you're a good tactician, luck just wasn't on our side that day…Me and Raven believe in you, and so does Lyn…You know she wouldn't say we can do things we couldn't…now come on…we've got to get ready."

Sharn spit up a bit of blood and looked at Karel. "You're a bastard when you're trying to be nice, you know that?"

Karel looked at the tactician and grinned. "I missed you too."

* * *

A wyvern landed just outside of Jared's tent, and the rider dismounted and entered. He took off his helm, revealing short black hair with red streaks, and blood red eyes, and knelt. "Lord McRath, you called?" he asked. 

"Rise Archius…no need for formalities, you're my friend…I need to talk to you about sensitive matters…guards, leave us." Jared said.

"What did you want to talk about Jared?"

"Keep what I tell you private…but…I'm deserting…I'm tired of this war, which is waged for stupid reasons…I'm going to the other side Archius. I would rather die on my feet, then live on my knees, as a dog for Bern…I don't want to slaughter innocent women and children…the nomads let them rid into battle you know?" Jared said with shame in his voice.

"Really…It'd be a shame to have them die because of our foolish mistakes…Jared, you're not alone in this…My wyvern riders have been discussing defecting for a while now…come with us…we're leaving tonight, to meet the nomads before the battle starts…we should be able to turn the tide in their favor." Archius said, place his hand on his friends shoulder. "Come on… there's room on Ezanul for you as well."

"Archius…thank you…my friend" Jared whispered as he grabbed his things and hopped on Ezanul. He held on to the saddle as Ezanul beat her mighty wings and took off, flying towards where Archius' wyvern riders were stationed, ready to take off.

"Are you all ready?" Archius yelled from the air.

"Ready Sir!" They all cried out.

"Mount up and move out! We head for the plains where the nomads are…remember to have the parley banner ready…we don't want to get shot down when we're trying to save their lives."

The sound of wyvern cries filled the air as the unit of riders took off and flew towards the Sacaen encampment. As they neared it, arrows were shot from below, and they barely managed to dodge them.

"Archius, have your men wave the banner now!" Jared cried out in fear. How ever the men were already waving the banner, and landing their wyverns.

"Set down your weapons and have your highest ranking officer come forth!" One of the riders yelled.

Jared dismounted, setting his tomes on the ground and waked towards the rider, who held a sword to his back, and gestured towards a large tent. Inside the tent was a man with green hair held back by a bandana, and a green beard. He looked at Jared and gestured towards a cushion on the ground, and they both sat and faced each other. Jared nodded his head and said "Greetings Dayan, Silver Wolf of the honorable Kutolah tribe. I have come to seek an audience."

"Greetings to you outlander, you have a Bernese accent to your voice, why do you come here, to your enemies camp, waving the banner of parley, on the eve of war?" Dayan asked calmly.

"We have defected from Bern…we see no point in this war, and will not slaughter the innocent… our hands may be stained by blood, but so far, all of it has been of bandits… we do not wish to taint ourselves with your blood…We have come to join your side…if you will accept us…We are 90 wyverns strong, each with an experienced rider in the saddle."

"You speak with much knowledge for one so young…who are you?"

"I am Lord McRath of Bern, born to Kurth and Mani of the Lorca, sent away at a young age to study magic in Bern."

"You are Kurth's child? I knew your father…I am sorry to say that the Lorca are dead…all but you and Lyndis…I recognize you as our kin, Jared of the Lorca, and I accept your aid…you may bring your allies into our encampment, and then return here, so we may formulate a plan of war."

Jared nodded and run off to tell Archius the good news. _'Finally…our luck is looking up.'_ He thought.

_

* * *

'Finally…our luck is looking up.' _Legault thought as the mountains grew ever closer, and they started to escape their pursuers range. A man ran beside Legault, causing him to almost fall from his saddle, but then he regained his composure. "Greetings Manakete…What brings you here on this night?" 

"I am Minaku, and I am here to help you…your pathetic troops are tired, so I thought I'd even the odds a bit…he stopped running and turned to face the Bern riders.

Minaku was an intimidating man, heavily muscled, towering above the tallest human, with a glaze that could see through to a mans soul…this how ever was offset by his pink hair with white streaks, that was covering half of his skull, the other side waxed smooth. He held aloft his dragonstone , and then he grew, blocking the riders from view, taking on the shape of a large fire dragon. His roar reverberated through out the mountains, he breathed fire over the Bern troops, and then returned to his human form.

"Your foes will harass you no more…When you come across the Etrurian Army, tell them that Irisv means healer in draconic, and they should let you in…good bye." He said as he ran in the direction Legault had came from.

_'So that was a dragon…If that's what Nergal wishes to being back then we've got a feirce fight indeed…'_ Legault thought as he ordered his men to set up camp, and tend to the wounded. "I'm going to take a walk…watch for enemy reinforcements or any signs of the Etrurians." He said as he walked past the guards and walked further up the mountain. After traveling for a short while he felt a sword tip jabbed up against his back and a man removed himself from the shadows in the rock face.

"Who the hell are you and what are you…Legault is that you?" The man asked.

"Pent! You're alive! Come, we need to talk." Legault cried in relief.

"Alright… Topaz, tell Louise where I went will you?" Pent asked.

"Yes sir…" Said a sorrowful female voice from behind Legault. _'Sounds like she's sad she didn't get to kill me…'_ He thought in fear.

"Now…lets head down to your camp and talk."

* * *

_Tempo90: _Please reveiw...and if you want to submit an OC please let me know...you need to tell me where your character is from, their class, hair and eye colour, name and age, plus personality. I will not be accepting any Theifs or Assassins. And if your character is from Lycia, you must tell me which province they are from, and if they are from Sacae, what tribe they are from. Thank you 


	7. Chapter 7

_Tempo90:_I'm sorry for the delay on the update...the phone and internet at my house has been shut down since early august, and right now I'm at school uploading this. Many thanks go out to my supportive friends hotshot14, Kate(I forget your pen name), and many many thanks go out to my inspiration, Songficmistress, who's support, and love have kept me working on this. I do not own Fire Emblem, and with that said, enjoy chapter 7.

* * *

_**Chapter 7**_

_A night of discoveries._

"Almighty Thor, God of thunder, strike down my foes!" Jared yelled as lightning fell from the skies blasting more Bern foot soldiers into the skies from their force. Looking around him the scene was gruesome. The beautiful plains of Sacae were once more covered in blood. '_History does repeat itself it seems' _he thought remembering the tales his father would tell of the clan wars back before the unification by Hannon, one of the Eight Heroes. Archius and his flight of wyvern riders were to his left, their great wyverns all but covering the western skies, the cries of their wyverns instilling fear in their foes, and hearting their allies as Bern troops would fall over each other to retreat with each charge of the wyverns. Dayan had taken a fair amount of nomads to Jared's right and were using bow and blade to protect their homeland. Arrows blotted out the sun and fell, a rain of death, upon the farther ranks of the opposing army, and their blade striking out at any foolish enough to get close to them. Jared had taken the lesser experienced archers, and a lone myrmidon under his command and defended a sector of the valley. "Almighty Thor, God of thunder, Strike down my foes!" he cried again as more lightning came down with a fearful impact. He took another glace around. So far the Saceans had taken minimal casualties, and were decimating the Bernese warriors.

"Dammit…they're just toying with us," He said aloud as he slew more with his magic. "Mother Earth and Father Sky, be with us on this day." He continued as the battle labored on.

"Well Pent, quite the motley bunch you've got here…" Legault said half heartedly. He only counted a few hundred novice warriors, mages and healers.

"I know it's not much Legault…but this is all that remained after the Etrurian Conquest…Even Erk perished in that war." Pent said suppressing his tears over mention of his dead student.

"Milord…" Said a female voice from behind them.

"Yes Moriko," Pent said turning around. "Ah Lady Irisv, you as well. How may I help you ladies?"

Legault studied the two quickly. The shorter of the two had long flowing dark hair, and golden eyes, making him shudder in fear, reminded of a morph. She had a lithe build, and carried herself differently then a battle trained warrior, making him think she was a thief but then he glanced at her leg and noticed a scrip like Sharn would have for carrying his tomes of magic in, tagging her as a mage, along with the typical novice mage hood, which boosted magic powers along with looking silly. The other was taller, almost Legault's height with waist length black hair with platinum streaks, and silver eyes. She was slender and wore some jewelry which looked very expensive. In her hands was a mend staff, denoting her as a cleric of the Church of Saint Elimine. She was currently staring off into a spot up in the sky above Legault, and her face was in stern concentration, making him jokingly think she was trying to will something down to smite him.

"We've prepared food and medical treatment for the messengers" The cleric said, making Legault jump. He had though she was spacey, but it would seem otherwise.

"Good Irisv, and Moriko" Legault said turning to the dark haired mage "Did you read chapter 23 of The Chronicles of Corum as was discussed?"

"Yes Milord…" She said sighing, making Irisv smirk a bit.

"And Irisv, did you practice your blessings?" Pent said in response to her smile.

"No," She said calmly. "I was otherwise occupied trying to get Moriko to do her reading. However I will have them perfected by noon tomorrow." She said, eliciting a blush from Moriko and a sigh from Pent.

A memory struck Legault and he turned to Irisv. "Minaku says your name means healer in Draconic." He said randomly.

Irisv turned and looked at Legault. "Oh…thank you sir…that explains his strange kindness towards me."

Both girls walked off and Legault looked at Pent. "They're strange." He said bluntly.

"No more strange then some other people we knew back before this damned world…Take Barte for example, poor man got painful headaches just from hearing big words, and he was always wanting to fight."

Sharn, Raven, Karel and mounted knights rode down a road through a wooded area, the moon and stars shining through the canopy over head, the sounds of birds and rushing water filled the air, making their cursed world disappear for a minute or two. They approached a small bridge over a rapid river and Sharn sighed. "We'll have to cross one at a time, slowing us considerably…"

"I'll go first." Karel said quickly and rode towards the bridge, only to be knocked off his horse by a man in blue wielding an axe.

"What the hell…who are you, who would ambush a man with an army at his back?" Karel said drawing his sword from his scabbard. "Well other then a dead man." He finished.

"I am a man!" The axe man bellowed. "If you are a man then we will fight!"

"Where have I heard this before…," Sharn said to himself and then said to the axe man. "Indignation."

The man fell to the ground holding his head and yelled "Ow! Big words make Barte's head hurt!"

"Barte?!" Raven and Karel yelled.

"Wait…I know those voices…Raven…Karel? Sharn!!!" Barte said happily, grabbing Karel in a hug.

"Let…Me…Go…Now…Or…Die." Karel said icily.

"Come on Barte…let's get you away from that bully." Sharn said beckoning Barte over and glaring at Karel.

"Sharn…it does Barte good to see you alive…where are you going?" He asked.

"We're going to Sacae under orders from Lady Lyndis to help the Nomads fight Bern…Do you want to come with us…there will be lots of fighting." Sharn replied.

Barte's eyes lit up like a child with a sugar rush on Christmas morning when he sees presents. "I'll come." He said happily and hopped on the back or Sharn's horse.

'_Like taking candy from a baby…_' Sharn thought with an evil grin.

The camp fire roared high during the night.

"Archius!" Jared cried embracing his friend. "It's good to see you tonight…how did you fare today?"

"Haha! I slew so many of those disgraceful dogs, I would have sworn Hartmut himself was lending me his strength and skill…I was up to 49 before I lost count." Archius said gleefully.

'_He lives for battle_' Jared thought.

"And how about you my friend? How did you fare?" Archius asked.

"My tome fell apart half way through the battle so I had to resort to fire." Jared said. "I think I killed about…" He continued and trailed off, distracted by what he saw in the distance.

"You think you killed…?"

"A lot…I'll be back…I'm going to talk to someone."

Archius turned and saw what his friend was staring at. A slender girl, dressed in the guise of a myrmidon was polishing her sword alone, ignoring the celebration the others were having after their victorious day. He smirked and patted his friend on the back.

"Good luck…she seems to be your type." He said jokingly

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jared said looking at his friend.

"Err…what I mean is…please don't hurt me, your bestest friend, who you've known since you moved to Bern, and good luck?" Archius asked in a small voice.

"That's better." Jared said with a grin, enjoying his friends discomfort. He walked towards the girl and then sat down a short distance beside her.

"Mmm?" She asked distractedly.

"Everyone else celebrates, and yet you choose to stay here by yourself and polish your sword? Is something wrong?"

"Yes…infact there is." She said in a soft voice. "What we faced today was nothing compared to what Bern has to throw at us…I know it."

Jared looked at her. Her fiery red hair framed her heart shaped face and her emerald eyes glinted in the fire light. "You're quite right about that…I'm sure tomorrow they'll come at us with something stronger, progressively wearing us down, so they can crush us with their strongest troops."

The girl giggled. "Well aren't you the depressing one?"

"No…I just know how their commanders head works…He was my friend but refused to defect as I had."

"Ahh…you are one of the fabled defectors from Bern, now sung of as the hero's of the Kutolah?"

"Yes…Although I am a Sacaen, I grew up in Bern, studying magic under the former Lord McRath…I am one of the few Lorca left it seems. My name is Jared." He said offering her his hand. She shook his hand and replied turning to face him "And I am Danya, daughter of Dayan."

Jared then got a good look at her face and grew light headed and fainted, much to Danya's surprise. Sighing she sheathed he sword and picked him up, and set off in search of a tent to set him in.

"Excuse me miss?" A youths voice said from behind her.

"Yes?" She asked

"May I ask what exactly happened to my friend there?"

"He fainted…it happened when he got a good look at me." She said embarrassingly and turned around to see Archius grinning slyly. Jared stirred slowly and noticed that he was slung over Danya's shoulder.

"Umm…Danya? Can you set me down?" Jared asked meekly.

"Ahh…certainly." She said and gently set him down on the ground. "I'll be back polishing my sword if you need me."

Archius waited until Danya was out of hearing range and nudged his friend. "You fainted when you looked at her?" He said suggestively.

"So…?" Jared replied shyly.

"I think someone in…dare I say it?" He said in mock fear. "Love?"

"Bugger off Archius…She's the chief's daughter…plus it wasn't like that…I'm just…tired"

"Yeah…tired," Archius said doubtingly. "Look…that stuff might work on any other person here, but not me…I've known you since we were kids man…I'm not stupid."

"Then explain to me why you failed history, math, and spelling?" Jared asked grinning.

"That's not fair!" Archius said protesting. "I just didn't do my work is all," He said "I swear I'm not stupid…"

Jared laughed and smiled. "I know…I know."

"Now…what you need to do is get to know the girl…simple enough, cause I think she likes you as well." Archius said playfully pushing his friend.

Jared growled and swatted at his friend and then asked. "You really think so?"

Archius laughed. "Yes…now come on…get back over there and talk to her." He said while shoving the sage over towards Danya. "And no fainting this time you wuss."

Legault was sharpening his knives in a corner of a wagon which rumbled down the road. He had managed to talk Pent into sending the Etrurian Liberation Army to help protect Bulgar, although he had to promise that they would help retake Etruria from Bern in return. Pent was sound asleep, and two large men sat near the opening of the wagon, weapons at the ready. Pent had said their names were Douglas and Percival, The Lance General, and the Knight General of Etruria respectively. Neither of them talked much, and from the air about them, they were fierce warriors. Legault found himself drawn to thinking about Irisv for some reason and shrugged it off. '_She must have piqued my interest is all_.' he thought and put his knives away and fell into a fitful sleep.

Riche looked at the messenger. "Are you sure?"

"Yes sir…Colonel Archius and his squad of wyvern riders have joined up with the nomads."

"Hah, the fool," Riche spat "Honorable to a fault…it was wrong of his highness to give such a man a command position. And what of Jared…was he spotted on the battlefield?"

"Yes sir. There have been reports of a magic user amongst the first lines of the nomads."

"Hmm…it is of little consequence…sooner or later Sacae will fall and we will be handsomely rewarded. And in any case my elder magic will decimate his pathetic anima magic…oh how I have longed for this day…" Riche muttered to himself and then looked at the messenger. "Dismissed."

Once he had departed Riche sat down, only to jump up at the sound of a voice behind him. "Is there a problem Riche?"

Riche turned around to see a man with pale skin, dark hair and bright gold eyes. "N-n-no…No problems."

"You seem nervous…do sit…I have a message for you."

Riche sat down again and turned the man. _'Bloody morphs always scare me.'_ he thought.

"Lord Nergal sends his greetings and congratulations to you for your promotion. Secondly he wishes to tell you that there are some unexpected complications that have arisen, namely those who fought against him in the past are gathering once more, but they shall be dealt with by using Bern's army."

"And of my terms?"

"He agrees to your terms…once you conquer Sacae you shall rule over it."

"Tell Lord Nergal he has my thanks…and we shall conquer this land in his name."

"See that you do." The morph said and vanished off.

'_King Riche the conqueror…has a nice ring to it.'_ He thought arrogantly as he looked over the plains of Sacae. _'This land shall fall…and from the ashes shall arise a new order…which will shake the very foundation of the world.'_


	8. Chapter 8

I'm really sorry everyone for dissapearing in a sense...I've just been so busy with school, and since I'm a canadian, studying spanish is a bit tougher for me...but I'm soldiering on as best I can. If anyone wants to see one of my earlier works, which sucked majorly around the start, check out The New Threat which is a Mortal Kombat fic. Anywho I'm still looking for a few OC's so if anyones interested, just post their OC in the review, with their name, age, hair and eye color, where they're from, their class if they're human (please no more assassins or theifs for the love of the gods) and their personality traits. With that said...I hope you enjoy the new chapter. Please R&R._**

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_**Chapter 8**_

_This one time... at the tacticians guild…_

Sharn stretched and yawned. They had been riding for the past few days non-stop to reach Sacae in time. A snapping twig immediately caught his attention and then turned his head to look at it. A bird had landed on a branch that was too weak to supports it's weight and then flew off in fear. "Damn…" he swore. The bird was an owl, and it was flying in the day time. Owls were associated with death, darkness, and the underworld. "That's not an omen right?" He asked rhetorically raising his head to the heavens. A boom of thunder echoing from the distance was his reply. "…right?" he asked again. Raven and Karel looked at each other quizzically and then shrugged. Even before the world had became this twisted, Sharn never was known for sane thoughts and comments.

"Sir Sharn! The scout has returned with her report and asks to see you immediately." one of the soldiers said.

Sharn woke up instantly and nodded. "Bring her to me, also bring food and drink for her."

The soldier turned and gestured to the scout and then ran off to get something for her to eat. The scout ran over towards Sharn's horse. Her black hair had platinum streaks and her eyes were cobalt blue. Sharn couldn't help but notice her slim but voluptuous figure. _'__Damn libido__…'_ he thought.

"Report." Sharn said

"Sir, the battle has already started and, judging from the amount of corpses on the battle field, has been going for some time now…although something about the battle seems off."

"Which was?"

"There was a flight of wyverns fighting on the side of the nomads…the man leading them is someone you may remember from when you graduated from the tacticians guild and ventured across Elibe for the first time…it was Lord Archius Damascus."

"What!? Are you sure of this?"

"Completely sir. He's of the right age, and matches the description you wrote in the report about who we may have to face from Bern."

" This does not bode well with me…did you see anyone else that stuck out?" Sharn asked.

"A sage with long dark hair was leading a squad of nomads on guerilla attacks on the Bern forces…I didn't see his face but he passed right by my hiding spot and I saw a silver hawk holding a fish on a bracelet he was wearing…he must be a master tactician as well."

"A sage who's a master tactician…how old did he look?"

"He looked to be in his late teens to early twenties...why do you ask?"

"Because I had a good idea who it could be…grab a horse, we've got to get there quick," Sharn made a dismissive gesture and shouted after the scout "And don't you dare die…your sister scares me more than an extremely angry wyvern which hasn't eaten for days."

_'__Archius__…__Jared__…__hold on, I__'__m on my way.__'_

* * *

"Gods of the forge, grant me this boon, FIRE!" Jared yelled, and flung his hand at a Bern soldier getting ready to stab one of the nomads from the rear. It was an ambush. Ritchie had anticipated his next attack and had troops lying in wait. Bit by bit, the nomads were losing ground, and they were tiring quickly. _'__This is the end for me__…__but I__'__m going to take as many of these bastards down as I can.__'_He thought and grabbed the most powerful tome he had, and gathered his strength. "FOR SACAE!" He bellowed at the tops of his lungs and began to chant "Piercing winds of ragnarok, destroy my foes! FIMBULVITER!" He felt his strength leave his quickly and a freezing cyclone flew from his hand and sent a large amount of Bern soldiers flying through the air. Time and time again he cast the spell, trying to keep the attackers away from the nomads, and each time his spell got weaker and less effective. All of a sudden his thigh felt like it was immersed in fire, and he fell to one knee causing his muscles to tense up and the pain to get worse. Reaching to the back of his thigh he felt the feathered shaft of an arrow standing erect. A war cry came from above him and he lifted his head just in time to see an axe come down, and then he closed his eyes. "Damn it…"

He felt blood pour down his face, but he wasn't dead…he wasn't even hit by the axe. He opened his eyes and he saw a flowing blue swordmasters robe in front of him. "Get up, or I'll kill you myself, wizard." the swordmaster uttered in a harsh, chilling voice. A swordsman with red hair ran over and started attacking the Bernese warriors. "Karel, remember what Sharn said…we keep this one alive."

Karel grunted in acknowledgement and ran into the midst of the enemy troops, yelling like a madman.

"You mentioned Sharn?" Jared asked the man.

"Yeah, he's our tactician….really insistent we save you and as many as your little nomad buddies as possible."

"Oh thank Elimine," he said. "How far away is the main host of your forces?"

"Not too far…they'll be here very soon." The man said and then helped Jared up. "My name is Raven by the way…now if you can stand by yourself…?"

Jared nodded. "Yes I can stand…thank you Sir Raven." Raven nodded and then ran off to help Karel. A trumpet and the sound of galloping horses announced the arrival of Sharn's forces. The new comers wasted no time in surging into the tide of Bernese troops and easily decimating a large number of the fatigued warriors quickly.

"Damn! They've got reinforcements, everyone pull back!" said a voice from behind the Bern line. The order echoed throughout the ranks as they turned tail and fled back towards where the main army was camped.

"Jared, Jared, Jared….I don't talk to you for a while and look what happens." came a familiar voice from his left.

"Sharn, you insufferable psychopath, do you remember what I said I'd do if I saw you again?"

Sharn looked puzzled and approached Jared slowly. "Not really…want to refresh my memory?"

"At the tacticians guild when my adopted family came for a visit…"

"Not ringing a bell…" Sharn said.

Jared continued. "My fourteen year old sister was eating lunch with me in the library…"

"Still nothing…"

"And then you came along drunker then anyone thought possible and groped at her and hit on her."

"Oh yeah…I remember now…and you punched my in the jaw knocking me to the floor… and you said that the next time you saw me when you had graduated you'd."

"I'd remind you of what they do to perverts in Bern." Jared finished with a growl and drew his unwounded leg back and kicked Sharn square in the genitals, making Sharn's mouth go into a perfect o shape and making him collapse to the ground writing in pain.

"I swear she looked older then sixteen! I didn't know she was your sister, I was drunk, I didn't know any better…" Sharn muttered in a pained voice, going over every excuse he could think of.

Jared helped Sharn to his feet. "Now that that bit of business is taken care of…Thank you for coming to the aid of me and my troops."

Sharn was still gasping for air as he chocked out "You're welcome…"

* * *

Legault paced in the wagon over and over. Bern could have attacked Bulgar while he was away trying to find Pent and his troops. _'Damn it…I'm getting stressed…well no surprise there, it's only the fate of one of the last free cities in Elibe resting on my shoulders.'_ he thought to himself. A firm hand was placed on his shoulder. "Easy there Legault…you're going to wear a hole in the floor of the wagon of you keep pacing like that. Plus you're starting to worry everyone else too."

Legault turned to see a fair looking man, with short blond hair. "Sorry Sir Percival…I'm just nervous."

A general with brown hair and beard stood up and walked over to where Legault and Percival stood. "Aye…and there's nothing wrong with being nervous….I'll admit that I'm a bit nervous myself…and personally I think everyone is before they go to battle."

Legault looked at the general quizzically. "Even you're nervous?…The "Great General" of Etruria, Sir Douglas?"

Douglas scowled at Legault. "I ask everyone not to call me that, but they never listen…Yes I'm a little nervous…but mostly excited…I haven't had any real challenges since I was a young lad fighting in the wars."

Pent walked hopped onto the back of the wagon. "You should try my job then…Challenges every day, trying to expand our knowledge and ability to harness magic… I'm nowhere near the level of Athos yet…but I feel like I'm on the verge of a breakthrough."

Douglas scoffed. "If I wanted to attack from afar like a coward and dress like a mummer I would have been a clown that throws water balloons."

Pent glared and retorted "Better that than being dumber than a rock and heavier than a wyvern."

A moment of tenseness was felt in the wagon until both generals burst out laughing and clapping each other on the back. Percival sighed and raised his hands in a gesture of futility. "Those two always act like this…bloody nut jobs is what they are."

Legault nodded in agreement. "But they sure do know how to lighten the mood." he added.

* * *

Ritchie threw a stone goblet at the messenger who had came to report on the war. "You can be serious!" Ritchie yelled in anger.

"I'm afraid so milord…The nomads guerilla attacks have devastated our supply lines, leaving us with very little supplies coming in to us, and all of what we lost have gone to the nomads…Also a group of soldiers have joined them…their standard is that of old Caelin."

"Damn it all to hell! How hard is it for you morons to wipe out a small number of uncivilized, inbred, bush people?! Saint Elimine…Tomorrow I take to the field to lead you myself…I'll show you what victory looks like. Oh yes… a little reward for you…" Ritchie said darkly.

The messenger grew fearful and asked "Milord?"

"Espíritu de los condenados, aristae mi animigos abajo a infierno! FENRIR!" He yelled and thrust his open palm towards the messenger. His screams brought Ritchie immense joy, and he imagined how happier he'd be using his dark magic to kill off the nomads, and his "friend" Jared. A guard walked in and announced. "Milord…someone here to see you… He claims to want to forge an alliance with us. We have stripped him of his weapons and have him waiting in the center of the camp…should I send him in?"

"Yes, do so." Ritchie said nodding. _'Finally some of those nomadic peons with some sense.'_ he thought as he sat down.

A large man dressed in nomadic clothes entered the tent. "Greetings Bernese conqueror…I am Rashad…Chieftain of the Djur tribe, and I have a proposition for you…"

Ritchie smiled and felt his anger slip away…this was going to be very advantageous…he knew it.

* * *

Fayreil walked back into her camp and wiped the blood off her daggers. _'The troops of Araphen had to be the fattest, most idiotic slobs I've ever had to sneak past' _She thought as she rubbed her blades with a cloth covered in sword oil.

"If that's so, then why did you kill them then?" asked her traveling companion who had just drug himself out of their tent.

"Dammit Darius! What have I told you about reading my thoughts?" She asked exasperatingly.

"Not my fault you just beam them out like that…besides you never seem to talk much so it seems like the only way I can get to know you is through your thoughts." he replied.

"I'm paid to escort you to Bulgar, not to make conversation and tell you my life story." she said coldly.

Darius moved forward and breathed flames onto the kindling lying in a fire pit and sat down on a rock by the fire. His gold eyes had unsettled her greatly until she found out he was an actual dragon, not a morph. She had lived in a town near the Lycian border, on the Nabatan side, but her town was also close to the dread isle, and was one of the first to be conquered by a man known as 'Nergal' in his search for the Arch-sage Athos… at the time she had though him crazy…searching for someone who had died centuries ago, but what with she had seen since then she was starting to believe. She could remember the invasion day perfectly, from the color of the sunrise, to the morphs murdering her family while she hid with her little sisters to save themselves. Her sisters were now staying with the manaketes in the city of Arcadia, safe from the dangers that she herself faced daily.

Darius sighed and said "I'm sure your sisters are fine, and before you growl, you need to stop worrying about what I pick up from your thoughts…I try to block it all out but every once and a while something gets through…nothing major, just surface thoughts." Darius was an outcast just as she had considered herself, both of them having lost their parents in wars, and forced to do degrading jobs so their siblings could survive… that was the main reason she had taken the job of getting him to the rebellion…that and she wanted to see if he was really telepathic. She learned the hard way and had been regretting it ever since.

"So Fayreil… I know there is more than one reason you want to go to the rebellion right?" He asked, his soft quiet voice barely audible over the crackling of the fire.

"Right again lizard breath," she replied. "I want to sign on and fight for a chance at a better life… anything has to be better than this doomed world."

Darius nodded slowly, as if letting this settle in. "And if you die, what then?"

"Then I die…simple as that."

"Do you not worry about what will happen to your siblings with out their big sister?" He asked.

Fayreil drew back as if hit. In her urge to protect her sisters she had forgotten about what would happen if she died. "I…I hadn't thought about that."

Yet again Darius nodded. "Don't be so quick to throw away your life. Always remember that even in your darkest hour when death seems to be bliss, that there are people in this world who count upon you, and need you there for them. Do not allow yourself to be consumed by revenge with out thinking of the outcome."

This time Fayreil nodded slowly and stood up, turning to the tent they shared. "Lucretia." she said as she walked towards the tent.

"What?" Darius asked in confusion.

"The name of my home town…it was Lucretia…and my mothers name was Margaret…just thought someone should know." She replied as she crawled into the tent. "Wake me when it's my watch."

Darius smiled and replied. "I will…get some rest Fayreil."

That night she slept the most sound sleep she'd had ever since her parents died.

* * *

A strong man wearing simple clothes and a bandana over his hair pulled a small skiff ashore and offered his hand to the woman sitting inside. Her tail twitched and her ears were flat on her head as she took his hand and got out of the small boat. The man chuckled and said "Luna, you'd think a cat who's been at sea for as long as you have would be unafraid of water, and unable to get sea sick anymore…up and at 'em we're here."

Luna growled at the man but hopped off the boat. "You really mean we've arrived Emi?"

Emi looked and nodded. "Yes we have, my love…we've reached Elibe."


	9. Chapter 9

I hate law class...keeping me so busy, and not able to post the next chapter...that and not having any internet at my house...but the latter shall be fixed in a few weeks. Thanks to the one person who reviewed...I hope that everyone enjoys this next chapter...still looking for a few OC's though...so anyone who wants a character in the story better speak up.

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Chapter 9 

_The law of the plains_

Ritchie looked at Rashad and smiled politely. "I assure you, Bern will be very appreciative of any support in crushing these rebel nomads... I can offer your people amnesty, and the protection that Bern has to offer."

Rashad nodded. "One more condition and my tribe shall ride with you."

Ritchie tilted his head quizzically. "And what would that be?"

"I want to kill Dayan myself... He and I have some unfinished business that I'd love to attend to at some time."

_'Excellent... His anger allows him to be played easier than a pawn in chess.'_ Ritchie thought before nodding. "That is doable... However, to do that, your nomads would have to attack from behind in hopes that Dayan is staying with those who are unable to fight."

Rashad gave a casual shrug. "I have no problem with that... I give you my word as a man of Sacae, that I will not betray you, and you know the people of the plains tell no lies."

Ritchie nodded and said in a tired voice "I know, I know, honour and so on... Wait a moment... I have an interesting idea... How ever... You would have to lie for it."

Rashad looked at Ritchie like he'd just been asked to swallow something disgusting. "I will not lie."

"Fine then... How about not telling the whole truth?"

"That's more like it... What did you have in mind then?"

Ritchie cast the nomad chieftain a sideways glance. "You could get nice and close to Dayan, and easily take his life in a bloody coup d'état, and then you shall be Rashad, Duke of Sacae, my most trusted assistant..."

An evil gleam appeared in Rashad's eyes. "A most cunning plan... I shall do as you command, warlord Ritchie."

"Umm... Excuse me, Lady Lyndis?"

Lyn jumped in surprise at the voice that came from behind her. "Oh, ah, err... Yes, may I help you?" she said turning to face the origin of the voice. She turned to see the two thieves from when Sharn had been briefed. Both had purple hair, but their eyes were different. The younger, Yue, was from Tania, and had the purple eyes, common to that area. The other, Rin, was older, with green eyes, and was from Khathelet.

Yue held three scrolls in her hand, which she offered to Lyn. "Here..."

Lyn opened the scrolls, two of them looked the same, but she couldn't understand anything they said, whilst the third was a report from Sharn, which was written when they were still a few days away from where the nomads fought Bern. He had found another ally from the old war, which made Lyn happier, knowing that others had survived that damned day. "I understand what this is... But the other two, I can't make heads nor tails of."

Rin replied in her cold voice "They're Fell Contracts."

Yue nodded. "We only need your signature here and then we may be of more use to you."

Lyn looked at the two suspiciously. "What do you mean 'more use'... And why can't I understand any of it."

Yue looked at Rin, who nodded and said. "Have you ever seen the ceremony where those who are experienced in battle are given a magical item to upgrade their power?

Lyn nodded. "I have... Wait, are you saying...?"

Yue nodded and continued. "Yes... Fell Contracts are written in the language of the shadows... Only thieves and assassins can understand it... When the 'contractor' signs, and then the intended person, in this case, Rin and me, signs in our blood, then we too shall have access to a greater power... We'll still be able to spy, open locks, and things of that nature... But we can also do so much more."

Lyn replied "Quit being coy, and spit it out."

Rin leaned against the wall and said "We'd become assassins... And we'd be bound to you until you deem our contract fulfilled."

Lyn winced at this, but asked. "You both want to do this?"

Both nodded calmly, and Lyn pulled out a quill and had them show her where to sign. They each then cut their finger, and signed their name in blood. The room took on a darker feeling, and both thieves disappeared completely into the darkness, only to re-emerge as something different... Gone was their ratty old cape and headband, both were replaced dark blue hooded cloaks and bandannas. Rin and Yue now sported a belt covered in pouches which probably contained poisons, and at the sides hung scabbards which contained vicious looking daggers.

Yue looked at Lyn. "If you need us, call our names... We shall always be in the shadows Lady Lyndis, always watching over you."

Rin and Yue then disappeared in an instant, leaving Lyn, what she assumed to be alone. She sighed and turned back to her desk.

"Lyn?" Rath asked behind her, causing her to jump up yet again and mutter "Wish people would quit doing that."

"Hmm?"

"It's nothing... What's up Rath?"

Rath walked over and put an arm around Lyn's shoulders. "You busy right now?" he asked.

Lyn leaned against Rath and replied "No... Besides, you know I'm never too busy to talk to you."

Rath nodded and said "Walk with me?"

"Sure."

Together Lyn and Rath walked through Bulgar, leaning against one another, heading to a quiet place on the town walls. The plains of Sacae stretched out as far as they could see, the verdant green grass being played upon by the gentle winds. This was their spot, where they'd sit and stare at the plains, forgetting all the chaos and pain around them, feeling that peace, the freedom that they had strived so hard for. Rath pointed out in the distance. "Do you see that small speck? That's something big, possibly a caravan headed for us... It could be Bern, or it could be Legault... If it were the latter however, he'd have to have punched a hole though Bern's blockade, and rushed through before they filled the gap. Our scouts judge it to be about a week away, and before you get worried, I've already rallied the troops, and asked them to help those who wish to evacuate."

Lyn looked at Rath and gave him a small hug. "Thank you Rath..."

Rath looked down at Lyn and slowly hugged her back. "What for?"

"I've just been so stressed lately that I think if I was to give any orders, moral would decrease, because I'm just so scared and hesitant... The day we longed for is just out of reach now... But it's obtainable now... We have a chance at fixing everything very soon."

"I figured as much... Look Lyn... I know you've always said that the timing wasn't right, but if that is Bern, then we've got a very hard fight ahead of us, and we may not get another chance... Lyn, please... Will you marry me?"

Lyn looked down at the ground. "I don't know Rath... I'm sorry... I just don't know right now."

Rath sighed and turned away. "Lyn... Try not to worry so much... We have a week... You'll figure it out by then."

Lyn watched as Rath walked away, and she pounded the wall with her first. "Damnit..."

Sharn looked up at Jared "That's impossible... There's no way you could do that with a force of that size... It'd be a suicide mission and you know it."

Jared shook his head. "Sharn, don't get ahead of yourself... That isn't even the full plan. Now as I was saying before you interrupted me, when I lead my force this way, from the east, you will lead your force from the south, we'll hopefully drive them to the north where we can rely on the enemies' lack of knowledge about the terrain, and they'll be stumbling all over, unable to do anything. We'll leave a small squad of experienced soldiers here with Dayan to protect those who can't fight, and we'll drive the invaders from Sacae, and once we do that, we can go back to Bulgar and help this Lyndis person you told me about."

Sharn nodded slowly. "Not that bad of a plan... But we've only got one problem... We drive them too far north, and we'll have to deal with their army that's marching in Ilia."

Jared placed a small coin on the map near the Ilia/Sacae border. "That's where the nomads say the Bern forces are camped, waiting for Ilia to reply to their demand for surrender. The paths through that area are very notorious for landslides and bandit attacks, usually with one proceeding the other... I'm sure that if we can push Bern into that area while they are weak, the bandits will view them as easy prey."

Sharn shook his head. "Too risky... A tactician doesn't rely on probabilities... That's the first thing we're taught in the guild."

"But in this case... Probability is all we have to rely on. We're running out of supplies and options... We have to get Bern out of the way now, or else everyone on the plains will die, and your friends in Bulgar will be overwhelmed and killed. Mother Earth and Father Sky! I know it's risky, but it's our only option if we want to have some chance at survival."

A small cough from the door of the tent drew their attention. Danya was standing there holding a letter. "If this is a bad time, I can leave."

The tacticians shook their heads. Danya walked over and handed Jared a letter and stood by him. "Who's it from?" asked Sharn.

Jared had a look of surprise in his eyes when he replied. "It's from Ritchie... He's asking for our unconditional surrender. He says he won't kill anyone who surrenders, and he wants to meet with Sharn and me personally."

Danya looked at him. "You're not going to surrender are you?"

Sharn gave her a manic grin and said. "Not on your life toots. We've worked too hard just to give up to some pompous windbag who invades the proud plains of Sacae. We'll fight to our last breath, and I'm sure that's what everyone wants... Or at least that's the impression I get."

"Danya... Go get your father. We need to talk with him about our plan."

She nodded and left the two tacticians in silence.

"Hey, McRath?"

"Hmm?"

"How far'd you get?"

"I don't follow..."

"You know... With that little Sacaen lady."

"Sharn… Not everyone in this world is as perverted as you," Jared replied looking indignantly at the other tactician. "Besides... It's none of your business."

"Look... Have you even told her how you feel?" Sharn asked.

"I was going to... Maybe once..." Jared trailed off.

"You sir, are a pansy, a coward, and a chicken."

"Big words from you Sharn, I've seen how you look at that sniper from Etruria... Have you told her how you feel?"

"Touché man... Touché"

Dayan walked in and looked at the tacticians. "What do you need?"

"Dayan... We have a plan, it's very risky, but we feel it's our only chance for success in this situation. I'm going to break our forces up into three troops, two large forces to attack the Bern troops and push them into the pass of Faustus, and a small troop to stay behind and protect those who can't fight. I want you to be in charge of the protection group since you're the chieftain, and should you die, your tribe is lost."

Dayan slowly digested the finer points of the plan as the pair explained it to him. "So let me get this straight... You're depending on bandits?"

Jared nodded. "I know, I don't like it any more then you do, considering what they did to my family, but it's our only hope."

"Alright. I trust in you two. I'll gather a small group, and you two go get your troops ready for what will be the end of this war."

"Darrius, are you sure we're heading in the right direction? I'm pretty sure Bulgar is that way." Fayreil said pointing north-east.

Darrius grunted in agreement and said "That may be true, but what we need to get there is this way."

Fayreil sighed and continued picking her way through the mountainous terrain that the crazy dragon was dragging her through... She was supposed to be leading him to Bulgar, not following him off on a trek through the mountains. Infact she'd made a point of telling him that multiple times, and she always got the same answer, no matter how she worded it.

"What exactly is this way anywho? There's no way anything could be this far in the wild and still be alive."

"You'll see when we get there. You humans are always so caught up in the now, always worrying about time constraints."

Fayreil replied. "Yeah, that's the thing about us mortals, we have this thing called getting old and dying... You should try it sometime... But seriously, what's in this direction?"

Darrius laughed. "Truthfully, I don't know; however, I do know that it's something that will be very useful to us, if we wish to get to Bulgar and save everyone."

A rustling in the bushes drew their attention and they both drew their weapons and crouched, moving slowly towards the noise. A fire could be heard crackling and the smell of cooking meat assaulted Fayreil's nostrils. Her stomach let out a growl, causing her and Darrius to stop. A head peeked out from the bushes and she saw a face that had half it's hair shaven off. He growled. "You might as well show yourself, I can smell you, and I heard you… If your lucky I'll kill you quickly."

Darrius stood up and roared, not in anger, but like a powerful dragon, causing the mountains to shake around them. "You're welcome to try pup... I'm older, and I'm a true Dragon, not a silly little manakete like you. If you're feeling lucky you can go right ahead, but it won't change the fact that you'll die."

Fayreil rushed up and put her hand on Darrius's shoulder. "Calm down big guy... I'm pretty sure he doesn't want to get his block knocked off," She turned to the Manakete and said. "My name is Fayreil, and this is Darrius, may I ask who you are?"

The manakete stepped out of the bushes and bowed to Darrius. "I am Minaku, I apologize for my outburst... I had thought you two were a bunch of Bern soldiers trying to steal my food. Little buggers are everywhere it seems."

Darrius nodded "Aye... They're headed to Bulgar to wipe out a pocket of rebels... And coincidentally, I am going to assist those rebels, and I want you to help us."

Minaku crossed his arms "What's in it for me?"

"Well, for one thing you'll get to eat your future meals in peace; secondly, you'll be a hero."

Minaku looked at his cooking meal and nodded. "You had me at food."

"Damnit Emi! I'm tired, carry me... Now!" Luna yelled and hopped onto Emi's back, causing him to stumble slightly, then glare at the girl.

"I wish we were back at sea." he grumbled, causing Luna to smack him on top of the head.

"No you don't." she growled.

"Fine, fine, I don't... So do you smell anything?"

"Yeah… Us… We stink like salt, sweat and dirt."

"No, other than that, you know what I mean."

Luna sniffed the air. "Metal and horses... Lots of horses. Hmm... Fire as well. Emi, I don't wanna go that way, I think there's fighting."

Emi shrugged. "We're here to find some trace of him, and we're not leaving until we search this entire continent. If he landed here, then we'll be famous... Or at least we will be when we find his tomb."

Luna's tail twitched. "Still don't wanna… But I guess if you put it that way I've got no choice… Maybe those people will have a place for us to bath, and some fresh food."

Emi grinned. "That's more like it. I wonder if there are people like us on this continent… The last one did… What was it called again… Magvel?"

"Yeah I think so… That place was so boring though… I was so tired of fighting zombies by the time we left. And that Lute girl, she kept pulling my tail thinking it was part of a costume… I don't see why you wouldn't let me claw her up a bit."

Emi sighed. "Probably because she'd fry you with fire magic… See, this is why I'm the brains of the operation."

Luna glared down at the top of Emi's head. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Emi snickered but kept quiet. Luna swatted the top of his head again. "Answer me you bully."

"Until you prove to me that your chest isn't the only part of you that's well endowed, you're not gonna be able to go anywhere alone."

Luna hissed and swatted his head again. "You're such a bully… But I know you don't mean it… Do you?"

Emi snickered again but kept walking… And then stopped. "Luna, get down, we've got trouble."

Luna hopped down and looked around slowly. "How many do you think is here… I smell at least twenty."

"And we've got you surrounded as well," came a voice from behind them. "Lay any weapons you have on the ground and then stop away from them. Our archers have their arrows pointed at your hearts, so don't try our patience."

Emi looked at the area where the voice originated and said. "We don't have any weapons… We're pilgrims."

"Heh, fat chance, you look more like a warlock and a summoned demon."

Luna looked at Emi and laughed. "He called you a demon!"

Emi sighed and shook his head. "I think he was talking about you dear."

Luna pouted and whined. "That's not very nice!"

"Men, step forward and prepare to strike! Lord Bishop, if you wouldn't mind dealing with the demon?"

Soldiers stepped forward in a circle around the duo and a bishop stopped behind the circle nodded. "It would be my pleasure to cleanse this unclean one from the earth… Saint Elimine, strike down this unclean soul!" That was as far as he got before a javelin protruded from his chest. The soldiers looked around and then turned their gaze to the sky.

"I shall not let you harm them! Foul dogs of Bern, you will perish on my lance!" Archius cried as his flight of wyverns swooped down on the troops, decimating the small group in an instant. Luna and Emi looked in wonder as all the wyverns landed, and Archius dismounted.

"Greetings Sir and Lady. I am Lord Archius Damascus, is there anything I can do to be of help?"

Luna and Emi looked at each other. "Well… There is something."

Dayan watched as Sharn and Jared lead their battalions towards the Bern camp. Reluctantly he had let Danya go with Jared… He had walked passed his tent and heard them talking.

"Look Danya… I'm sorry but I want you to stay here with your father. I'm worried that I might not be able to protect you."

_A slap sounded inside the tent and Danya said. "Damnit Jared, I'm not a little girl, I can handle myself… The reason I want to go is because I don't want to lose you… I lost my mother when I was going to Bulgar to sell crafts… My brother could be anywhere, possibly even dead for all I know, and you… You're still here, and I'm going to protect you with my life. Whether or not I'm here won't make a difference… But I'm sure I'll do some good if I'm out against Bern."_

_Jared sighed and said. "Fine, you can come… But stay close to me."_

A messenger walked up beside Dayan "Sir, someone's here to see you… It's Rashad from the Djur tribe."

Dayan was confused. The Djur tribe had a long standing feud going with the Kutolah tribe ever since Dayan had won the love of Suzu, the woman Rashad of the Djur had loved for a long time. Nonetheless he went to meet with Rashad.

"Rashad… I haven't seen you in a while… Why are you here?" Dayan asked.

Rashad looked at Dayan and said. "I'm doing what's right… I've moved my entire fighting force here. This war shall end."

Dayan beamed at Rashad and said "Excellent! With the Djur at our side, Sacae shall be free once more!"

Rashad drew his sword. "You misunderstand me Dayan…" Two of the Djur tribe grabbed Dayan's shoulders, forcing him to his knees as Rashad lifted his sword. "I'm only exacting the law of the plains… The strongest shall survive." And down the sword came.


	10. Chapter 10

_I'm back again! I do indeed live for those of you who are wondering. During this chapter I kinda went through an awakening so if the writing style changes part way through the story you all know why._

_A big thanks goes out to my new Beta reader SpacePirateGirl, without whom this chapter would have had bad grammer, and some spelling mistakes (probably a lot of mistakes, lord knows I just skim through this stuff.). Also the editing thing on here is screwed up so if this is aligned wrong, blame the site, not me. XD_

_As always, R&R just so I feel happy enough to continue, cause as long as one person likes it, I'll keep going._

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**Chapter 10:**

_Saints and Demons_

Deep underground, where darkness and death hold sway, there was movement, but then again, there was always movement in this section of the underground. He could sense it always; he could hear the rats as they skittered along the floor and gnawed on his books. Tombs of history and magical theory that would make even Athos gaze in awe; but, Athos would not read them because he was dead. The author felt no remorse over his friend's death, as death was human nature, and he was no longer human. The movement happened again and he was sure it wasn't the rats this time… No… this was an almost human movement, yet not human. His interested peaked, and he wandered off to investigate.

Karel and Raven cut a bloody path through the Bern soldiers and laughed all the way. Their blades cut through armour and flesh as though it were aught but air blocking their path. Sharn and his force were all around them, and to the south Karel could see the nomads under the command of Jared. Slowly but steadily Bern was being pushed back into the pass of Faustus where the tacticians plan would be put into action. Raven swung his sword and gutted a man nearby and grinned the manic grin that he had seen back in the days when Eliwood was still alive. Karel had felt it too, a sense of purpose that they didn't have that long ago. They had made a difference then, and they made a difference now. 'Humanity may be far from perfect, but it deserves better than enslavement by Nergal,' Karel thought as he parried a sword, punched its wielder in the throat and finally stabbed him through the ribs. A horn blew from the Bern camp and most of the Bern forces pulled back quickly, leaving a small group to slow any pursuit. The tacticians had ordered them all to try and capture any soldiers they could, and in the end a majority of those left behind surrendered instead of fighting to the death…yet another prediction correct by the tactical pair. Raven turned and grinned at his friend. "Beats the hell out of killing bandits, eh?"

Karel laughed and nodded. "Indeed it does… now I wonder where our gimp of a tactician is."

Said gimp of a tactician was trudging his way though mud, blood, and entrails left behind by the army, and swearing up a storm because of it. Karel and Raven covered their mouths with a hand, in a feeble attempt to cover up their grins. When Sharn finally got to them he was muttering darkly under his breath about how thirteen-year-olds should not buy hookers to play Halo on Xbox with. Karel and Raven knew better than to ask.

"How are we doing Sharn?" Raven asked wiping the blood from his blade.

"The plan is working well. Slowly but surely we're pushing them back, and as we beat them their moral falls even further, making it easier for us to progress. I finally feel like a tactician again!"

Karel cast a sideways glance at Sharn and smirked. "I told you that you could do it."

Sharn laughed. "Yep you did… one second." Sharn turned towards the direction Bern had run off in and yelled, "Bring it on, you ball-less buggers! I'm pumped and ready to go!"

A giggle from behind them caused the trio to jump around in surprise.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd swear I was listening to Great Grandpa Skrimir again," Luna said and grinned.

Emi stepped forward and gave a small bow. "Greetings, warriors of Elibe. I am Emi, and this is my wife Luna. We talked to your other tactician, and he suggested we help you out as best we can."

Sharn sputtered in disbelief… The girl had a white tail and white ears which had black tips. Jared walked up behind them and nodded at Karel, Raven and Sharn. Unlike Sharn who was only splattered with mud, blood and gore, Jared also had smoke smudges, and bags of fatigue under his eyes.

"These two aren't from this continent. They're archaeologists from a land called Tellius, searching for the grave of some legendary swordsman named Ike. They are what are known was Laguz, and they can transform into animals to fight... but these two have decided not to do so here, because it would cause some confusion and possible fear in our ranks… so they brought some magical weapons with them."

Luna nodded and pulled out a pale, white blade which had a skull, complete with vampire fangs, as a cross-guard, and the hilt was covered with black leather. The air around the blade was twisted and distorted by the magic emanated from the weapon. "This is the Naitest, a blade given to me by a friend. The blade has vampiric properties, draining health from its victim to heal its wielder."

Sharn cocked his head quizzically. "A vampiric blade? Here in Elibe we've got something similar called a Rune blade… but it's not as strong as yours due to the fact that many copies were produced at once."

Emi pulled a large labrys axe from where it was strong across his back. The magic around it wasn't as strong, but the weapon was just as impressive as the Naitest. "This axe is called Urvan, which was wielded by Sir Greil, father of the hero Ike. After the War of the Medallion, the heron Lehran placed an enchantment upon the weapon so it would never rust or break. The weapon is also blessed by the Goddess Yune."

Karel felt the age old longing rise in him once more, the urge to kill these strong ones, and he suppressed it with some difficulty. These strong ones would have to wait until those who would do harm were slain. His head swarmed all of a sudden and his vision begane to fade. Raven looked at his friend and caught him before he crumpled to the ground.

"Shit… This isn't good," Sharn said. "We need a healer over here now!"

A healer rushed over and checked Karel over, regretfully informing Sharn and Jared that Karel was in an incurable sleep, and would have to over come it with his own strength. Karel was rushed to a tent in the back of the battlefield where he was watched over constantly by Raven. That night Karel went into convulsions and was mentioning his sister Karla in a barely intelligible mumble. Renault had appeared in his dreams, the servant of Elimine who fought like a beast with a blade, the only man who had bested Karel with a blade. The bishop's words echoed throughout his head. "Why do you kill needlessly, my son? The quest to become strong is a fine one, yet yours is a dark thing, for you do it not to protect as others do, yet for your own personal gain… Think and reflect on the lives of those you have slain in your quest for power… Think of the family you slew for that sword you use, and the sister you spared. Do you know why you spared her?"

The answer came in a snarl of anger "I spared her out of stupidity!"

Even as a dream Renault still radiated faith and calmness. "No, not out of stupidity. You spared your sister out of love. You may be called the Sword Demon, but in sparing your sister you proved that you can be human, you can make a choice to save life, instead of end it. I too was once as you are, using my strength for my own gain, not caring about the outcome, and in the end, when I felt invincible, I was struck down… and in that moment I had a revelation and gave up my evil ways, and took up the cloth… It was only recently that I was truly able to repent for my crimes. I was the man who slew the parents of the monk Lucius… I confessed my evil act to him, and he forgave me… I felt absolved that I had done the right thing… As I said, the pursuit of strength is a noble cause… but should you continue along this dark path of yours you will neither find happiness, nor fulfillment, for always will there be one who is greater than you

Raven was one the border of sleep when Karel bolted up and gave one last yell of anguish. Raven ran over to his friend asking "What's wrong Karel!?"

Karel looked at Raven and for the first time since he was a child, tears welled forth and he cast his gaze down. "I killed them," he said between sobs. "In cold blood, for no reason…the bishop was right… I did not find fulfillment or happiness on my dark path, yet when I fight to protect others, I felt happy… Oh Elimine, what must I do to atone for my sins?" He asked.

A calm voice came from the entrance of the tent. "No one can answer that question for you, Karel, not even divine beings."

Karel and Raven turned to the voice and there stood Renault.

Rath reduced another piece of wood into kindling. He'd been chopping wood for the past four days to get his mind off of things… but it wasn't working. He was worried about the troops approaching, about his family on the plains and also about Lyn. He had asked her to marry him before, and he had been rejected, but when he had asked a few days ago he felt she might say yes… but now on the fourth day afterward his hope began to wane.

"You know that most of this is going to be useless if we don't store it properly?" came a soft voice behind him.

Rin knelt and gathered an armload of firewood and began to stack it in a nearby shed. Rath remembered that her father had been a forester in Kathelet and she had cut firewood for the village from time to time. Rath set down his axe and mopped the sweat from his brow. "Sorry," he said. "I just think we should be stocking up in case of a siege."

Rin snorted and replied "Yeah, what ever you say, boss."

"What does that mean?" Rath asked slowly.

"It's the middle of summer. We only need firewood if we want to boil ourselves to death… What's the real reason you're cutting firewood?"

Rath avoided the assassin's eyes. "I need exercise…"

Again Rin snorted. "You needed a lot of exercise before Sharn and the others left for Sacae, just like when you found out Bern was going to attack Bulgar, and now… I might be an assassin, yet I know people. You're stressed out, and we both know it. What's on your mind, Rath?"

Rath sighed and sat down on the splitting block. "I asked Lyn to marry me four days ago… I've asked her before but I was told that the time wasn't right."

Rin sat beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, just relax. Everyone knows the commander and you are in love…Have you ever considered the fact that she may not want children born into this desolate world? Perhaps, that right time she was talking about was the day when her blade pierces Nergal's foul heart. Besides… you know she's going to say yes eventually, so why bother worrying about when she says it. The only thing that should be on your mind right now is how to defeat Bern and Nergal, aught else."

Rath looked at Rin and nodded. "For one so young you have much wisdom…Thank you, Rin…But I've still got to cut firewood. We may need it to heat the pitch in battle."

"That's fine… I've gotta get back to Yue soon anyway… She thinks she's getting telepathic messages. Personally I think she's going crazy."

Darius sighed and stood up. "No luck," He said with a grumble turning to Fayreil and Minaku. "I know someone hears me, but I don't get a reply…Their dragon blood must be diluted by many generations."

Minaku shrugged. "Couldn't we just force our way through the blockade? Those Bern soldiers couldn't stop us even if they tried."

Fayreil shook her head. "Bad idea… If we forced our way through, not only would we be pursued, but the attack on Bulgar may commence ahead of schedule."

Minaku grumbled and walked back into their tent. They had been traveling with the manakete for some time now, and from what she had gathered, he lived and breathed combat. When he wasn't eating, sleeping, or pestering Darius, who he held in high regard, he was lifting weights or breaking boulders. Darius would always yell at him for needlessly destroying objects, but it was to little avail.

Darius sat down on the rock he had chosen and said. "You should go start cooking… I'm going to try and reach Bulgar by telepathy again."

Fayreil grumbled and went to start making a pot of rice, of which she was thoroughly sick of, and she was sure that someone with a very mean sense of humor decided it was a great survival food. With any luck they'd be able to get into Bulgar within the week and eat some real food.

"Why don't we force our way in…I wanna bust some skulls in!"

Legault and Pent signed and shook their heads. "That won't work, Topaz… Bern would follow us, and besides… we're too big of a fighting force to get through all at once." Pent replied.

Douglas nodded. "Aye…If it were just us, we could get through; however, I think we may have to wait for them to move so we can get them into a pincer attack."

Percival sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "So we have to wait more?"

Legault nodded. "Unfortunately so…"

"This means stupid rice again."

Rashad was furious. Over the past few nights his sentries were being slaughtered as they kept watch. Whoever it was lighting fast, and their swordsmanship was a work of art. Each slash seemed to tell a story of skill and dedication. In his frustration he had ordered tightened security and more torches, but his men were still being killed. He heard the sound of rustling grass behind him and he drew his blade in a fast ark, just in time to block a surprise attack. A woman dressed in blue Swords master's robes wielding a Sacaen blade smirked, her dark hair and eyes glistened in the mood light. "I expected no less from you Rashad; however, it's time for you to die. Traitors to Sacae will pay for their deceit in blood."

Rashad quickly rolled to the left just in time to dodge a fireball from behind him.

"Damn… Karla, I think we'll finally have met our match." Came a female voice from the grass.

"Seems like we have, Priss."

The movement came from the corridor to the right and he turned to catch it in time. A man in dark robes with red and gold runes stitched in it turned to meet him and grinned. Half of his face was covered by a purple turban and his entire presence radiated with malice. Still he felt nothing and continued to study the man when at last the man in the turban spoke. "Hello Barimond…I've got a proposition for you."

* * *

A labrys axe is an axe of Grecian design. Look it up on wikipedia. I was considering making it a Tabar Zin, but I chose the Labrys instead.

A classic tactic back in medieval times was to heat pitch (tree sap) or oil, and dump it upon the enemy for devastating effect.


End file.
